Power Ballad of the Day September 7th

Today: "I Remember You" by Skid Row:



..or technically, this formulaic power ballad was "generously helped along" by a certain Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora. As a matter of fact, Skid Row likely wouldn't have made it anywhere if it wasn't for the dynamic duo of Bon Jovi, as they helped produce and "polish" all the songs from Skid Row's self-titled first album. Also, they helped the fledgling young band break into the arena gig circuit by taking them on as opening acts. After this first album, with Skid Row skyrocketing to the top of the charts due to this song, "18 And Life" and "Youth Gone Wild", the band parted ways with Bon Jovi and Sambora, claiming that they could produce and make their own stuff, thank you very much.

And sure; their follow-up album "Slave To The Grind" was hyooge, owing much to yet another power ballad - "Wasted Time". Other than that though, there wasn't all that much single potential, and after an embarrassing third album, the band faded into obscurity. Of course, Skid Row attribute their inability to follow up their initial meteoric rise to a) musical differences within the band and b) MTV pushing reekazoids like Nirvana and the grunge bunch, but the fact of the matter is that Skid Row's first album differs massively both in style and quality from the later works.

What's interesting about the mentor role played by Bon Jovi and Sambora is that they totally pulled a Gene Simmons on the up-and-comers: Skid Row reportedly pretty much didn't see dime 1 after Bon Jovi and Sambora had taken their cut. Allegedly, Sambora later donated his share in the earnings of the album back to Skid Row. Anyways, this song puts Sebastian Bach's voice on a freakin' pedestal, as it fits his range much better than their own stuff.